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🌀 Internal Waves at the Pycnocline

Explore internal gravity waves that propagate along the density interface between water layers, and see how density contrast and layer depth control their speed and amplitude.

Climate, Ecology & Environment3DModerate60 FPS💧 Water

The simulation demonstrates how internal gravity waves propagate along a density interface between two water layers, showing how density contrast and layer depth together control wave speed and amplitude.

🔬 What It Demonstrates

🎮 How to Use

Adjust the density contrast and layer depth sliders to change the stratification, then observe how the internal wave's propagation speed and vertical displacement respond at the pycnocline.

💡 Did You Know?

Internal waves near the Luzon Strait in the South China Sea can reach vertical displacements of more than one hundred meters, making them among the largest wave phenomena on Earth despite being completely invisible from a casual glance at the sea surface.

⚙ Under the hood

Explore internal gravity waves that propagate along the density interface between water layers, and see how density contrast and layer depth control their speed and amplitude.

internal wavespycnoclinedensity stratificationgravity wavesocean layeringwave speedstratified fluidsbuoyancy

3D · Three.js / WebGL renderer · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install